On their farm in Denby, Iowa, Rosanna and Walter Langdon abide by time-honored values that they pass on to their five wildly different yet equally remarkable children: Frank, the brilliant, stubborn first-born; Joe, whose love of animals makes him the natural heir to his family's land; Lillian, an angelic child who enters a fairy-tale marriage with a man only she will fully know; Henry, the bookworm who's not afraid to be different; and Claire, who...

"Before Jodie Rattler became a star, she was a girl growing up in St. Louis. One day in 1955, when she was just six years old, her Uncle Drew took her to the racetrack, where she got lucky--and that roll of two-dollar bills she won has never since left her side. Jodie thrived in the warmth of her extended family, and then--through a combination of hard work and serendipity--started a singing career, which catapulted her from St. Louis to New York...

Meet Ellen: a spirited - and occasionally misbehaving - young horseback-riding student. In the spring of fourth grade, Ellen's life feels like a balancing act: she is only allowed to go to riding lessons when she behaves at school and at home. But it's much harder than it sounds! Ellen has a knack for speaking out of turn in class, and with a new sibling on the way, she can't resist taking advantage of her parents' distraction. Then, on one perfect...